KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has ordered the Karachi Development Authority (KDA) director general to turn up and file a personal undertaking about disbursement of pension and other dues of its retired employees within two months.
A two-judge SHC Constitutional Bench headed by Justice Adnan-ul-Karim Memon noted that financial difficulties cannot justify withholding of pensionary benefits which constituted a statutory right.
Citing the KDA DG Asif Jan Siddiqui, finance director Nadeem Shabbir and others as alleged contemnors, Mohammad Ilyas along with other petitioners sought contempt proceedings against them for disobeying earlier court orders about payment of their post-retirement dues.
The counsel for the petitioners asserted that they had retired in 2021 from KDA and the SHC had passed an order in February this year on a set of identical petitions directing the KDA to pay all outstanding pensionary and post-retirement dues to the petitioners strictly in accordance with law within two months.
However, the lawyer also submitted, the officials deliberately and willfully flouted such order and pleaded to initiate contempt proceedings against them.
The counsel for KDA asserted that the authority was facing financial constraints and intended to arrange funds through auction of commercial plots to ensure the payments within two months.
The bench in its order noted that financial difficulties cannot justify withholding pensionary benefits, which constituted a statutory right as consistently held by the Supreme Court in various judgements.
Adjourning the hearing till Sept 14, the bench warned: “Failure to comply with the court’s orders prima facie attracts Article 204 of the Constitution. Accordingly, three-week time is granted to DG KDA to appear and file his personal affidavit undertaking on release of petitioners’ pensionary benefit within the said period.”
Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2026
